In copending application Ser. No. 226,497, filed on Jan. 19, 1981, and owned by the assignee of the present application, there is disclosed a frame assembly on which rows of poultry cages are supported. The frame assembly has a pair of uprights connected adjacent their tops and bottoms by cross members, and a series of vertically-spaced cage-supporting arms extending inwardly from the uprights. Braces extend at an angle between the arms and the supporting uprights.
The frame assemblies are generally located at about ten foot intervals in a typical cage bank, which may be several hundred feet long. A typical poultry house may contain several such banks of cages. Thus, since a substantial number of frame assemblies are required, it should be apparent that a much greater number of braced arms are required. If the braced arms were assembled using conventional fasteners, such as nuts and bolts, a considerable amount of labor would be required to erect a cage bank, not to mention the additional cost of conventional fasteners.